Conventional water attractions that allow for boardriding maneuvers, typically involve a flowing body of water. In these attractions, the flowing body of water in which such flowing body of water is of such depth that the surface boundary layer effects of the flowing body of water over a limited number of wave forming surfaces significantly influence the rider's ability to perform boardriding maneuvers. Such “sheet wave” water attractions may simulate a stationary unbreaking ocean wave or, through the use naturally-occurring ocean wave shape, may create a stationary barreling wave, or a combination of the two.
In existing inventions, a flowing body of water is created by a nozzle or a series of nozzles having either a planar or radial orifice, projecting water onto a surface which is unchanging with respect to any vertical plane taken through the attraction parallel to the flow at any given point, or involves projecting a flow of water which is parallel across the width of the flowing body of water onto a geometrically changing surface. In both cases the surface shape is substantially unchanging with respect to time.
Such existing “sheet wave” water attractions with such nozzle shapes and configurations are limited to creating certain planar “sheet flows.” Thus, there is a need in the field of nozzle shapes and configurations for water attractions that will allow for non-planar flows of water emanating from a nozzle or a series of nozzles which may have nozzle orifices with varying widths, thicknesses, and/or acceleration characteristics, varying in flow direction in configurations more complex than planar and radial, and flows which emanate from a nozzle or a series of nozzles which are specifically designed to flare or spread the flow with respect to distance from the nozzle orifice or orifices in order to achieve specific flow characteristics or features on flow supporting surfaces, and modular nozzles which can be combined in an array to form a flowing body of water over a complex riding surface. There is also a need in the field for an invention which covers the use of radially-oriented nozzle orifice configurations, which creates a flowing body of water onto a surface which is changing with respect to distance, orientation, height, angle, slope, steepness, and other additional characteristics from the nozzle orifice or orifices of the radially-oriented nozzle or series of nozzles.